The Shallow Grave of William T Spears
by CerealKillerx3
Summary: After William is found beaten and in a near coma, supernatural problems begin to plague London and the Shinigami as a whole. As the Reapers begin to try to read William's Cinematic Record to try to discover the answer to what landed William in such a state, they realize the answer to that and all the problems in London lay within William's tragic past.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

_May 20__th__ year of our Lord 1537_

_Tower Green_

"Oh God! I swear to the Almighty himself that I did not kill her! I swear it upon my immortal soul!" The man's pleading fell upon deaf ears even though an entire crowd watched as he was dragged to the scaffold by two burly tower guards.

One person heard the man; his desperation and the screeches were forever etched on their memory. A scrawny onyx haired boy standing in the row nearest to the wooden platform stared up with hazy steely blue eyes. There was a steady stoic expression upon his face as he watched the scene before him. His small yet firm hand gripped one of his mother's who stood at his side, who too looked upon the scene. Her outward demeanor calm but she gazed at the doomed man with raged filled eyes. The boy took mental note of this and his visual attention locked on his fraternal twin brother who held onto their mother's other hand. He was as stiff as their mother but rather then looking at the scaffold itself he was staring at what sat upon the very top: crows. Their calls shrieked over the soft murmur of the crowd as if they were proclaiming and sentencing the man's fate making it official. The man was going to die.

"Perfect day for this bastard to die," these were the first words the boy heard his mother speak all day. He could sense what she was referring to. Standing on the tower green in the middle of the Tower of London felt like being in the eye of a hurricane. A thick layer of dark gray clouds hung in the sky making the day almost dark as night. The atmosphere was wet and heavy with the signature English wet gloom. The boy felt as if the world was anticipating this man's death as much as his mother was. "He does not deserve to see the proper light of day again."

He did not know why or the manner in which he did it, but a mere few weeks ago this man that now stood upon the gallows with the executioner, couple of guards and the priest, kidnapped his four-year old sister Rosaline from their home and murdered her. The ten-year old boy hardly knew his sister, being of different genders and years apart meant they were rather detached. However he knew she had been a sweet pretty thing and very intelligent in her own right. He could not understand why someone would murder her, and neither did his mother it seemed, for she stared at the gallows with the eyes of vengeance.

The boy's family, namely his father, was in the king's inner circle, so once a man was found knelt over Rosaline's body covered in blood and the murder weapon in the hand, he was dragged straight off to the Tower to be held until the trial. Evidence acquired from him did not come in a pleasant manner. Justice was swift; the day after the trial was concluded the man was condemned to die. That day was today. From what he heard, his parents had a choice of how their daughter's killer would die, his mother chose hanging over beheading, she said she wanted him to suffer.

"Mother… I think-" the boy started to say but she held up a hand to shush him.

"Quiet. He's about to give his last words, I need to hear what this scum has to say for himself." The boy fell silent with heaviness in his chest respecting his mother's wishes.

The man looked desperately around, his eyes flicking wildly over the crowd obviously trying to think of where to begin. "Please, someone please listen to me. I swear I didn't kill that little girl, I swear it! I would never do such a terrible thing. I beg you to look more into it and you'll see I'm telling the truth!" His eyes wildly scanned the crowd falling upon the two twin boys that were beside their mother in the front row, he even had the guts to lock eyes with the mother of his supposed murder victim. "Please… I didn't do it… I didn't do it!" He began screech as the guards and executioner began to take position for the task at hand. "That trial was fixed! If you just open your eyes and take the time to see that I'm an innocent man!"

"Mother-"

"Shush child. Now is not the time," she said sternly as the man was given his last rites and the final preparations were made to carry out the execution. The boy looked to his brother who finally glanced away from the crows and to the man itself. Desperation showed in his eyes that was almost equivalent to his mother, it was the desperation to see this man die. He began to feel like he was the only one that felt even a shard of doubt.

"Amen," the priest concluded and stepped back away from the scene and the executioner took his place upon the scaffold. He ensured the knot was properly tied around the neck before stepping back and too hold of the lever.

The crows watched with their beady onyx eyes as sweat trickled down the contours of the man's face. Uncontrollable shivers ran through his body as the strength clearly began to disappear from his legs. His own weight began to become too much for him as they buckled causing him to sink down closer to the wooden floor. The boy saw the man's breathing become shallow and more frequent.

The handle creaked from the effort when it was pushed, and thus it sealed the man's fate. A loud gasp was emitted from his voice as the trap door beneath his feet gave way and he fell ten feet and all slack was gone from the rope. It was at that exact moment when a crack was heard as the man's neck gave way and broke as well. Commotion caused by the execution distressed the ravens and they took to flight into the air in a flurry of black feathers.

The boy swore the man's eyes were looking at him as he dangled there and the life disappeared from his hazel eyes. It was completely unnerving to the ten-year old and all color disappeared from his face, as did all his naïve innocence towards the world.

"William… Thomas… It is good you have seen what happens when justice is truly carried out in our world." His mother gripped his brother's hand and his with her own in a strong grip. "At times like this, true justice is the only thing that matters."

1


	2. Chapter One - Shattered

**Chapter One**

_March 12__th__ year of our Lord 1887_

_Shinigami realm_

Ronald Knox, the youngest Shinigami in the London Dispatch Division (something he took the upmost pride in, to the point of being cocky), sat at his office desk typing up his reports for this specific day. This was the part of the job he really hated, the action of hunting and gathering souls gave him the rush of a lifetime, but this was basically torture. It was what the job demanded and he made sure it was all in the form that his boss, William T. Spears, demanded.

The black and blonde haired young man paused in his work and his brow wrinkled in thought. Speaking of his boss, he could not recall if he had seen William around the office. Other then it being a pretty normal workday, that was the only thing that really stuck out as odd. His boss was always around. William was well known for being the first one at the office and the last one to leave. His piercing green eyes shifted over to the desk that was two behind him, those eyes of his landed upon a vibrant red head.

"Oy, Grell! Do ya know where William has gotten off ta? I 'aven't seen him all day." He leaned back in his chair draping a bit over it in order to be more comfortable while looking back at his co-worker.

Grell sighed some and tapped his fingers upon his chin in thought, "I think he said he was going out to take care of a few personal things, and that he would be right back. You would have heard this if you came into work on time Ronnie Darling…"

Before he could prevent it, his eyes rolled in response. "Yeh, o' well, but 'e 'asn't exactly 'come righ' back,' e's been gone all day."

"Sadly William is more dedicated to his job then me or anyone else, I'll never know why…" He sighed heavily, "but I'm sure he'll be back as soon as he possibly can."

Ronald frowned briefly and swung back to face his desk feeling more antsy and restless but he did eventually buckle down and got back to work. Time seemed to go by much slower then.

* * *

A few hours passed, Ronald was now finishing up his reports, much to his relief, when he heard shouts telling people to clear a path in the halls. A strong sense of panic and alarm took hold of the young Shinigami causing him to jolt out of his seat and stand on his tiptoes to see what was going across the office. All he could see were two people walking briskly, one in front of the other clearly carrying something between them. He could not see anything specific since a crowd of his coworkers obscured any chance he had to see what it was.

Anxiety finally got the best of him motivating him to push through the crowd of people that blocked Ronald from the point of interest. All he was able to see was a quick glimpse of onyx hair in between the two carriers before they disappeared into the infirmary.

Whispers and mindless chatters of gossip sprung up amongst the large group of Shinigami that gathered the moment they were out of view. Ronald could not help but roll his eyes. He did not have the patience for such purposeless drabble, unlike them he was going to see if he could do something, anything, to help if he could. He finished pushing through the remainder of people that had not yet gone back to their desks until he reached the door to the infirmary. It did not take any thought at all to push open the door and slip inside the room.

The first thing that caught his eye was the doctors and nurses hectically running about as they attempted to get the needed supplies to tend to the sudden patient. Ronald watched them a moment before allowing his steady gaze to scan the technologically advanced medical center. Whilst the humans were still struggling to understand everything about humanoid anatomy and medical benefits of the natural world, the Shinigami were much more advanced in both knowledge and their technology. They could easily treat something as simple as a cold, or in this case, something much worse…

Through the hustle of the doctors and nurses, Ronald finally spotted the figure on the hospital bed across the long room. Currently it was the only person occupying a bed, thus he had to be the one that was just brought in. He swallowed stiffly as he felt great dread come over him as he crept closer to the bed. Feet were heavy as concrete, weight on his chest made it hard to breathe and his heartbeat sped up and muted all sounds around him. All that mattered was closing the distance between him and that bed.

It was his slow arduous pace that made the walk feel like an eternity until he was at the end of that bed peering down at the figure that lay upon it. It was at that moment Ronald felt his growing fears come to life. His eyes fell upon the stiff, pale, unresponsive figure of his boss: William T. Spears.

Dry blood caked and covered his thin-pursed lips and several tracks of that blood ran down from his lips and down his chin and neck. Bruises and cuts covered the middle of his slender neck screwing up what Ronald saw as perfection. Lastly he noted the slashes and cuts that laid around and across his boss's eyes, which made him note another important fact: William's glasses were not on his face. He looked and saw they were not even set upon the bedside table where he would have expected they would be if a doctor or a nurse took them off as they examined him.

The building fear inside the younger Shinigami got even more extreme and overwhelmed every inch of his being. Not only there was a creature or a being out there that could defeat his boss, but there was a being that beat him in an unresponsive state. Ronald almost didn't want the doctors to strip the rest of his clothes off and show the state of his body if everything above his collar was marred to this terrible state. For a moment his eyes had fallen on his boss's neck for a little too long by accident and he swore he saw veins protruding a little in the deepest section of the main cut.

Though he had a terrible urge to throw up all the contents of his stomach, he did his best to hold himself together. Ronald had seen worse admittedly, but seeing a person he knew and cherished in such a state, riled his insides to the upmost degree. He had to hold himself together for William's sake, for the man was still unconscious to the world.

Ronald was soon brandished to the side by two nurses and a doctor who, at last, got all the supplies and equipment they needed to start tending to the boss of the division. The youngest Shinigami watched with an anxious gaze, until a nurse led him out of the infirmary. She promised to get him the moment they stabilized William before she quickly disappeared back into the medical ward.

All he had to do right now was wait. It was all he could do.

* * *

"Ronald? Ronald Knox?" A few eternal hours had passed when the nurse finally came back out and called for him.

He had been sitting still, stiff with stress and his fingernails were now nubs, but the moment he heard someone call his voice he had jolted up without hesitation. "Y-Yeh?" He asked as he rushed over from the waiting bench. He had refused to go back to work he knew he would not be able to concentrate on it.

She led him back towards the infirmary talking to him all the way back there. "Now, I must tell you, his physical state has stabilized but that does not mean that he's anywhere close to being where he was, it will take a few months to get back to his former status…"

"Is e'… ya know… awake…?" Ronald wanted to talk to him, look into William's eyes as he reassured him that everything was going to be fine and he was there for him.

"I'm afraid not. Mister Spears is still in a deep coma and it seems he will be that way for quite some time. His conscious brain functions are still not responding. I'm sure they will with time. We just have to be patient right now and take this at one step at a time… It was a miracle he survived at all considering what was done to sections of his body. We must not discount that."

Ronald just nodded at this staying silent even as they re-entered the infirmary. The moment he was able to, he rushed to his boss's side sitting in the chair beside his bed once again. It was then he reached for his hand gripping it lightly and tried to smile.

William's neck was bandaged all around the slender contours. His face and lips had been cleaned up of all the blood that had been caked upon it and of course, the deeper gashes had been stitched up. Lastly all the cuts around William's eyes had been disinfected and Band-Aids had been placed on the more serious of them.

The blond had to admit despite the bandages, William looked more relaxed then he had ever seen him. He found it sad that this was the first time he had seen his boss without a stick up his ass. There wasn't even a single frown on his face; it was completely relaxed. Ronald did not know whether to find comfort in this alien sight or to be bothered by it. Nevertheless, he finally got to see what some of the girls in Generals Affairs were saying. William actually was quite good-looking, _if _you had a thing for the stiff, official bookish types that is. Why he had to see this now whilst his boss was such in a dire state did disturb him some, but he tried not to think too much more about it. Even if William was unconscious, he needed to be mentally in the present in order to be alert while William could not be. Most of all, he felt like he should be doing something to help him get better faster, but he could not. Ronald never felt more helpless in his existence as a Shinigami.

"Boss…? Boss?" He whispered holding his hand clasping it between both of his in a tender warm touch. "Please wake up… Open yer eyes; we're all so worried for ya… We all want teh bastard who did this ta pay fer hurtin' ya…" He had let go of one of the hands to use it to tenderly stroke William's soft pale white cheek gazing longingly at him. He slowly drew his hand away shaking his head at himself, "nah, ferget what I said… Relax fer once, get better… but teh moment yer better, ya open yer eyes or I'll never fergive ya fer makin' me worry longer then I 'ave ta."

William did not stir. He was as still and pale as if one of their fellow reapers had stolen his life-essence away. It was so disturbing to the young Shinigami that he had to slide his finger off of his boss's cheek to the side of his neck, pressing his fingertips right against the indent there in order to feel the small weak pulse that still kept William very much alive, though it was not apparent in the least.

"He's still very much alive, I can assure you strongly of that. If not for his strong essence and determination not to let him fade away he would have been long gone." The head doctor over William's care had made himself known by walking over to the bedside and close to Ronald. "You must be Ronald Knox, I heard quite a lot about you from the nurses, gossip and all that."

Ronald let out a little strained laugh and he smiled feeling embarrassed, "eh, good things I can 'ope."

"Well, that you are quite the charmer naturally, and that you're a hard worker with poor motivation. Lastly that though you try not to show it outwardly, you care deeply for Mr. Spears, it does show at times like this however." He shook his head, "pardon me for the little rant there, what I meant to say is that the pleasure is mine, I am Doctor Calloway." He bowed his head a little then stepped towards William's bed clearing his throat before he started to speak again. "His case is a disturbing one, I have never seen anything like it. Whatever attacked him to put him in such a state is no laughing matter. It truly knew how to attack a Shinigami's essence and how to tear it apart. Luckily enough Mr. Spears is strong and did not allow that being to succeed in its endeavor."

Ronald's eyes widened considerably in his surprise, "O' blimey! There's somethin' out there tha' can do tha'?!" He felt like going after his superiors, taking them by the shoulders and shaking them like crazy for not notifying him of this danger. First, he had to absolutely make sure that William was going to be ok and pull through this horrible ailment.

The doctor sighed heavily then, "apparently, no one was openly aware of it however. At least there are no accessible records that describe these symptoms after an attack by anything that we're aware of…"

"Do ya at least know why e' can't wake up? I mean we're not 'umans, so a simple bump on teh noggin' couldn't 'ave caused this, righ'?"

"You're correct. A concussion did not cause this… In fact we do not think that any of Mr. Spears physical injuries have caused this deep coma, we believe after or during attack, whoever did this has messed with his own Cinematic Record."

Ronald felt himself stare the doctor down in mild confusion. He had been a Shinigami for quite some time now but certain specifics about his new life tended to go through one ear and out of the other. William was the one who lived for specifics, he himself preferred to live life to the fullest and learn about specifics later when he needed them. Now was one of those times it seemed. "Cinematic Record? I though tha we no longa 'ad those since we are dead 'umans tha' are reborn inta Shinigami an thus we dun 'ave a Record anymore."

"Yes… and no. As you know when humans die Shinigami reap their souls and collect their Cinematic Record, but those who lived a misfortunate life, or whose lives were taken from them before their scheduled time, have the chance to be reborn as Shinigami. Only if their soul is strong enough to endure the transition of course." The doctor took a breath as he glanced briefly at the comatose supervisor. His eyes lingered before they drifted back to Ronald after a moment. "A human's Cinematic Record ends when they die, and then it is collected and stored as you know. However, if they become a Shinigami, a new specialized reel begins as the person starts a new life. And instead of a soul, Shinigami have 'life-essence.' "

Ronald nodded occasionally to show that he was listening and paying attention but he almost felt bewildered by the amount of information that was coming at him at once. Still, if listening to all of this meant understanding what happened to his boss, he was more then certainly going to listen to all of this. "So uh… ya said it was 'ose things tha' were damaged an' rendered 'im in tis coma?"

"That is the most basic version to explain it, so yes that is correct, but let me emphasize that this is extremely rare. I have lived this life for a long time and have not yet come across an occurrence like this before. Mind you, records three hundred years ago mentioned a string of attacks on humans that had this pattern of wounds that rendered them in a comatose state or killed them. However, records never indicate that the person behind the attacks has never been indentified."

The young Shinigami paled further at this information. Even he understood the implications of this. Either there was a very dedicated copycat or the perpetrator had remerged from the furthermost depths of recorded history to continue what he began three centuries ago.


	3. Chapter Two - Innocence

**Chapter Two**

_July 14__th__ year of our Lord 1540_

_5:30 AM_

_Melford Hall_

* * *

"William!... Will! Wake up! You must wake up now!"

William twitched and quivered feeling a pair of hands gripping firmly upon his right upper arm jerking him back to the conscious world. His steely blue eyes parted and fell upon the impatient figure. "Thomas… What is causing such urgency? Mother said we do not have to wake until dawn…"

His twin Thomas lessened his grip upon his brother and backed up to give him some space. "Yes, I remember but father is leaving for court early. I just thought if we managed to catch him before he left, we might be able to convince him to fetch us in a few days so we can finally accompany him to court as well. I strongly believe we are finally old enough."

William was still in the process of waking up. This was far too much to deliberate mentally so soon after being jostled awake. The part of his brain that was alert enough to process information allowed himself to mentally agree with his brother. At this point in their lives they were thirteen years old, though it could be argued that they were still boys, many boys in their age group and social class were already betrothed securing a prominent future for them. All in all, William and his brother had lived sheltered lives as compared to their peers. Perhaps it truly was time for them to expand their horizons.

"Very well, I will quickly dress and meet you downstairs," he promised his brother as he slid out of bed. Thomas nodded at this and smiled gently before he exited his brother's bedroom leaving him alone to get ready for the day ahead.

As William stripped his nightshirt off his slim body there was a knock upon his door. "Young Master? May I come in and assist ya?"

"Yes Peter, you may. I would appreciate that very much."

The door opened revealing a boy who was two years William's junior. Peter was a scrawny boy with dirty blond hair. His clothes were constructed of a simple fabric fraying a bit at the edges here and there. Being the son of the most favored personal maid and servant of William's own mother, he was quickly entrusted to the position of taking care of one of her own sons. If he proved his own loyalty to the family through dedicated service William's family would invest money back into him and buy him some proper clothes befitting the servant to the household of a lord's family.

However, Peter had been his personal servant since he was nine and had not left his side since. William saw him more of a brother then a person who society saw as worth little more then the dust that covered their streets.

William watched as the younger boy took the nightshirt from his hands and proceeded to go to his wardrobe, his thin preteen form finally free from the confines of the stiff upper-class clothing. However, after putting the worn nightshirt in its proper place, Peter then drew out the intricate everyday garbs for an upper class male for his master. If there was even the slightest chance that William and his brother Thomas would go to court this day, Peter would make darn sure that his master went to court looking in such a way that it would turn even the king's head to look at such a dapper young man. William would make his lineage very proud indeed.

"Are ya excited sir?" Peter could but help but ask. If today was going to be his master's first day in court, it would be a momentous day indeed.

"I am nervous if I am going to be truly honest, but it is going to happen sooner or later, and it would be nice if that day came soon so that I may begin to have experience earlier in my life…" William admitted then. "Although, I would prefer if it if you came along, it would put me more at ease."

Peter looked up at him and studied his master. His eyes then shifted nervously downwards as he worked on getting his master's clothing onto his slim physical form. "I'm happy ya think so highly of me, but I'm not exactly suited fer such a place, I mean the king an the whole court is there an' well… I think I would jus hold ya back o' somethin' like tha. Maybe after I get more experience like the olda servants I can finally accompany ya to the palace someday," Peter smiled brightly causing his soft green eyes to sparkle out of his joy.

No matter how "lowly" little Peter may be, William greatly disliked hearing the boy verbally call himself such a title was so undeserving in his mind. If people were allowed to receive titles based on their inherent goodness, there was no doubt in his mind that Peter would be King. However, there was not a single society on Earth that worked that way, it was a shame in his mind but even a thirteen year old boy knew that would not be practical way to run any society. "Perhaps, though you will always be worthy in my mind Peter, but I respect your decision if you do not feel confident enough to attend quite yet," he was being more then honest, he never had any desire to make Peter uncomfortable.

The manservant bowed his head smiling gratefully, "you are too kind, I am so grateful." The boy's nimble fingers twitched and fumbled then as he prepared his master for the potentially important day. He swallowed stiffly trying to fit the buttons through the holes to close up the second layer of the top of William's outfit, however whenever he got close his hands would jerk and twitch in such a way that he had to start over completely with one, or several of the buttons. "Oh blimey! I'm so sorry sir! Please forgive me!" He sputtered out as he bowed his head, which only succeeded in him undoing all of his process on that piece of clothing.

William studied him with his own steely blue eyes that were softened with the kind emotion he held for the boy. "Peter… Peter. Please look at me," he instructed in a gentle voice. Peter visually fidgeted then before he dared to finally look up at his master. He quizzically gazed into William's eyes once he gained enough courage to do so. "Deep breath, I believe in you… Do not put any unneeded stress upon yourself; this truly is not different from any other day," William then managed to have a smile appear upon his thin stiff lips.

"But if I screw up…"

"You will not screw up, come now, you can do it," William insisted. He knew Peter too well. The boy was anything but a negligent screw-up, just lacking confidence that's all.

The boy nodded stiffly then, he took a deep breath as instructed by his master until he felt his heart slow down and he made sure his fingers became more steady as they worked. This time they were much more steady and efficient as they should have been before he made a fool of himself. At this pace he finally managed to finish and William looked more then proper. William even approved after glancing at himself in his very own full-length mirror. He did not approve of the modern high class's taste in fashion however, all the frills seemed entirely unneeded and seemed to do nothing but get in the way of practical tasks.

"Now that we are done, I should hurry up, Thomas must be having a fit from waiting…" William said gathering up the things that he needed to keep at his side at all times, such as his coin purse and pocket watch, he did not need much else since his father would be there as well. He could not think of anything else he would need. If they were truly going to go to court, he had Peter prepare a bag with some clothes and other necessary items he would need for a brief stay. For now, he quickly hurried down the hallway and down the grand staircase to meet up with his brother, who was currently partially hanging upon their father's horse pleading for him to allow them to come with him. He tried to keep it all refined, but he ended up giving into his childishness as he practically begged for their father's permission.

"Thomas, rise yourself from your lowly begging and behave in a manner that is more suited for your stature, prove to me that you are worthy if you truly desire to come." As their father spoke, his powerful voice overpowered anything that William or his brother could have summoned up with their own voices, thus both fell silent then.

Thomas backed from their father's horse and he stood up straight, as a true gentleman of the court would do. He then cleaned his throat in order to make his still-developing voice steadier then it would be otherwise. It was only then did his eyes meet the expectant gaze of his father and spoke. "Please Father, William and I would love nothing more then to come along with you to court, so that we may finally understand our standing in this society and how our great kingdom operates. It is something we need to do eventually in our lives, the sooner we do it, the sooner we can start truly learning." Thomas even finished it with one of his charming, but gentlemanly smiles.

Their father scrutinized Thomas to see if his son was being sincere and not just kissing up to him. His eyes then shifted to William who was the more emotionally collected of his two sons. "Very well, you two may come with me and stay the first few days before the business is conducted with the king."

Thomas cheered as collectively as he could while William smiled then as both of the boys felt the true sensation that they were truly taking a new step in their lives. It was exhilarating.

Their father then sent for the servants that were standing beside them to gather up his sons' things and put them onto the traveling carriage that would be behind them as they journeyed across the landscape of the British Isle.

William took this time to glance up to the upper floors of the house and it was then in the smoothest part of the panes of the glass of the window that he saw Peter's face gazing down upon him. Even considering the distance and the impurity of the glass he could see that Peter was already sad from his absence. It did not make him particularly happy to part ways with his friend either. This was the first time in years that they would be, but it was only for a few days as father said. He lifted his hand and waved at him summoning up a small sad smile of his own. Despite the sadness between them, Peter smiled as well and managed a wave of his own before William was helped onto his horse.

The raven-haired male looked back one last time at Peter before starting down the long road to Hampton Court Palace castle where the king and the court waited their arrival.

* * *

The trip to Hampton Court Palace lasted the full day. William considered himself lucky however since other noble families had to travel much longer, Melford Hall was as close as a noble family could get without being sucked into the chaos of the city.

When William's eyes finally landed upon that Heavenly place he was shocked that such a picture-perfect place had such a tumultuous history connected to it. Hampton Court Palace used to belong to Cardinal Wolsey, King Henry the Eighth's most trusted advisor until he could not properly arrange the annulment between the king and his first wife, it was then that all Wolsey's assets, including Hampton Court, was relinquished to the crown and Wolsey himself was sent to the Tower of London. It was there that he was sentenced to the same fate as many before him, however he was spared that death and died of a mystery illness when he was within the confines of the Tower. William, even at his young age, thought that was a merciful death compared to the people that Wolsey had condemned to die at the gallows, that is, if the execution that he had attended when he was young was anything to go on.

William hopped off his horse still rather intimidated by the large structure, but he became even more so at the realization that the building he was gazing upon was the summer residence of the King of England, he was in there at just this moment! The young book oriented teen hardly knew how to contain himself or his thoughts in general.

He was only stirred from such thoughts when his father placed his hand upon his shoulder. He glanced at the hand and then up at his angular face. Being a tall man it took some effort for the young teen to look at his face. "Are you ready William?" he asked as softly.

William could only nervously nod in response and he glanced at his brother who was gleaming and verbally fawning over the palace and the grounds themselves. William also overheard various verbal quips from his brother on how he would impress the king: "Oh! Imagine if there was an assassination attempt on the king. I am so ready to tackle that bastard to the ground in front of the entire court. I can only imagine the glory that would bring upon our family name after I save the king from almost certain death!"

William felt a soft laugh come out of his lips, which was luckily obscured by the sound of their carriage's driver getting down from his seat and then opening the carriage door for the family. The boys' father got out first then helped his sons get out safely, first the excited Thomas, and then the more restrained William. The two boys followed their father up the stairs and to the giant double doors that separated the tedious and trivial world from the one of luxury and purpose. His father strode over the guarded threshold without any hesitation. Thomas followed right behind him without a second thought or consideration. William, however, felt like he was the only one that was daunted by the prospect of entering this strange world. He had spent his entire life thus far preparing for such a moment, but now he was here he felt so inadequately prepared. Only the tug on his arm from his brother reaching out and grabbing him to pull him inside woke him up from his overwhelmed state.

"Come on William, we have to make a good first impression now that we are here, and standing there like a drunkard is not the way to do it," Thomas grinned at his brother, who just forced himself to give a nod in reply as he followed his brother silently inside.

Upon arriving in the entrance hall, their luggage was taken to the guest wing of the palace by some bustling lower servants. A higher stationed manservant beckoned them to follow as he led William's family to the grand hall where there was currently an evening feast going on in the king's honor. It was something that happened most nights, but that was just one of the many perks of being king, he could have as many feasts as he willed to have. He just had to snap his fingers and all those around him worked tirelessly to make it happen.

Even though he was more then well informed of the mannerisms of court life, because his father had told him and his brother many times, but nothing could have possibly prepared the young man for the sights and sounds that rushed over him the moment those doors to the grand dining hall opened.

A vast room spread from the doorway where William's family stood. The room had a dark wooden floor that complimented the dark wood of the richly decorated hammer-beam ceiling of the room. The walls were covered in stunning and intricate sixteenth century Flemish tapestries depicting the biblical scenes of Abraham. A set up of two rows of long tables were set up parallel to the longest walls leaving an large empty space between them. The chairs faced this empty space, where the entertainment would be if anything was happening at this current time. Another long set up of tables was propped up on a dais making them perpendicular to the other tables. In the center of the chair setup at this row of particular tables was a grander seat that was much grander and beautiful then all the others. The detail to the wood was exquisite and the green material upon the seat cushion was breath-taking, even William noticed this from the opposite end of the room. He was aware that the only reason he was able to observe the cushions quite closely was because there was no one currently sitting in that grand chair. In fact, not many people were sitting down currently at the moment. Most of the lords and ladies stood about the room gossiping and chatting with one another as a small group of musicians played a cheerful elegant tune that set the mood for the dinner.

William's steely blue eyes flicked around feeling mesmerized by all the new things and people that were surrounding them. Thomas looked up at their father the moment after he realized the grandest chair was currently empty, "Father? Where's the king? I want to see the king."

"Compose yourself Thomas, he will be along shortly, I have no doubt about that. Please go find a place to sit at one of the regular tables since everyone will be sitting shortly momentarily."

William glanced at Thomas before he headed to one of the tables and sat down. The entire time he ensured his posture was proper and perfect so that he may be able to represent his family in a positive light. Thomas took a moment of glancing around, clearly drinking in the sights before he settled down enough to sit down by his twin brother.

Servants bustled in as discretely as they could as they began to tend to setting up the tables as every kind of food imaginable was placed down before the guests' eyes. Though they were quite used to this pampering, the noblemen and women reveled in the luxury that being in the king's presence provided them. All the guests took this cue to start sitting down in all their proper places.

William watched each of them with some intrigue. He was not going to take any of this for granted; he was going to learn as much as he possibly could from everything that was around him. It was then his eyes landed on her.

Sitting at the table that was parallel to his, but across the room, was a pretty young woman. The first thing that drew William's eyes to her was the sweet musical laugh he hard heard from where he sat, but her bright magnetic smile was what made his eyes stay upon her. He observed that she had pale delicate skin, shining bright brown eyes that matched her gorgeous and silky looking reddish brown hair, which only showed because her proper English headdress sat farther back on her head then what was seen as culturally proper. She was no doubt a well off to do lady despite her slight transgression with her headdress because she had on of the most gorgeous dresses he had ever seen. The boy felt a sudden surge of jealousy as he spotted that the smile was pointed at a male companion that was seated down next to her.

William, even as a young teenager, a gentleman was not supposed to feel this indecently about women that they were not properly introduced to yet. Still, he did nonetheless.

His eyes stayed locked upon her until he felt a sharp jab to his ribcage courtesy of his brother. He rubbed it and was about to give his brother a piece of his mind, but Thomas spoke first. "Why are you staring across from you when you are going to miss the real sight to behold," he chattered excitedly as he motioned to the double doors that were now held open by the palace guards. There in the middle of the doorway stood a rather over weight man garbed in the finest silk and fur clothes. His most defining feature was his bright red hair which shown around the brim of his fine hat and the neatly trimmed beard. As the man walked across the room to the dais, William noticed that the man walked with a limp and he had to use a walking stick to move without the aid of another person. The man lumbered over to the grand chair that was the center focus of the room. William's breath hitched. This man was the king. He was the ruler of everything William had ever known.

King Henry's eyes surveyed all his guests with his piercing eyes, but a small smile had taken hold of his lips at the joyous scene. He made a few welcoming remarks before he allowed everyone to start eating. Though he had tried his best to listen, the words were greatly muted to the boy's ears. He just stared. However, his heart did cease in its regular pace when the king's eyes met his own. Out of a gesture of humility and shyness he averted his eyes quickly downward.

"Lord Campbell! Are these the twin boys that I have heard you praise constantly?" The king's voice carried easily across the room to William's father's ears.

"Yes Your Majesty, these are my two beloved boys William and Thomas. I thought it was about time to bring them into your presence and glory," their father said with a respectful bow of his head.

This caused the king to let out a roar of joy filled laughter in response, "they look like they will be fine future gentlemen to carry on your family name."

William looked at his father then. He never thought he had seen his father beam with that much pride before in his life.

* * *

The festivities had continued after the meal. There was dancing in the open areas of the room. Other guests amused themselves by continuing to converse with the others as everyone tried to gain favorable attention from the king.

William, however, felt quite exhausted from all the new experiences. He withdrew away from the other guests and into the nearby courtyard. He found a nice stone seat that was placed among the gorgeous garden. He felt relieved to have the pressure of all those prying eyes momentarily off of him. It was so overwhelming that he needed time for it all just to sink in slowly. None of it felt quite real yet. It was too surreal for him to take in all at once.

He did not find it strange that his mind eventually rested upon that young woman. Her smile had been the most enchanting and beautiful feature of another being that he had ever seen. If only it was pointed at him. If only, somehow in all of his inexperience with the opposite sex, he could make her look into his eyes and smile at him as gloriously as she did to her male companion.

Then, as if out of his wildest fantasies, a figure had cast a shadow over him, which caught his attention quite quickly. He looked up and saw her standing there beside him. He looked at her in utter wonder; he had no idea if she was even the real thing or a figure just made from his imagination and deepest wishes.

"You are new here, are you not?" she asked him with a sultry tilt of her head.

"Yes actually, my… my father is Lord Campbell, I am his son William," he bowed his head, but he quickly stood up, took her hand and kissed the back of it, "the pleasure is all mine."

She let out one of her beautiful laughs; "I have been in court many years now. Since this is your first time shall I give you some tips and advice?"

William's face softened considerably in joy, "if you would not mind, I would rather enjoy that actually."

The young woman smiled and she sat down beside him, and smoothed out her skirt over her lap.

The two of them chatted about the court, then their conversation turned into something more fun in nature. She even graced him quite a few times with her gorgeous enchanting smile.

Up to this point this had been the greatest day in the young man's life. It certainly was the high point. If William had been aware of the tumultuous misfortune that was to quickly follow, perhaps he would have avoided this woman at all costs. Because this young woman, with the smile he so adored, was the very beginning of it all.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

I'm so sorry this chapter took so long to come out. College has been a challenge this year, so that had been the main hinderance. Then I intended to get it done over my winter break but I had some family emergencies that needed my attention more. Hope you all understand 3 and I promise that the next chapter will not take this long to come out.

Also, you have obviously noticed the time switch from the previous chapter. This fic's setup will be alternating between the past and present every other chapter. Thus the next chapter will be back in "present" Kuroshitsuji time, aka the Victorian Era. I do hope you enjoyed reading about young William and experience him in a different period of his life, and a different light 3


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